This invention relates generally to personnel screening systems utilized at passenger terminals, and more particularly, to a system configured to improve passenger handling in a transportation terminal and a method of operating the same.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has recently mandated more stringent inspection procedures be implemented by the travel industry to reduce the possibility of passengers boarding a carrier such as a plane, for example, carrying concealed weapons, explosives, or other contraband. To facilitate preventing passengers boarding a plane carrying concealed weapons, explosives, etc., the TSA requires that all passengers be screened prior to boarding the aircraft.
For example, passengers arriving at the airport terminal first submit to a manual verification process that generally includes presenting their boarding pass and a form of identification such as a driver's license or passport, for example, to security personnel. The security personnel then manually verify that the passenger has a valid boarding pass, the name on the identification corresponds to the name on the boarding pass, and that the picture on the license or passport corresponds to the passenger presenting the license and boarding pass to the security personnel. After the manual verification process is completed, the passenger is requested to walk through a metal detector to ensure that the passenger is not carrying any concealed weapons.
While the current passenger screening process is reliable, the process may require additional security personnel to perform the screening procedures. As a result, the cost of implementing an effective security screening process at a transportation terminal is increased. Moreover, the time required to perform the screening process is increased thus necessitating passengers to arrive relatively early to allow the passenger sufficient time to complete the screening process.